Mississippi River needs attention

8:24 PM,
Dec. 7, 2012

Written by

The Sun Herald
Biloxi

Dozens of times this year, low water has forced the closure of sections of the Mississippi River to commercial traffic, a disruption of the economy too costly to be ignored.

Imagine the rage - and the immediate reaction - if all truck traffic through the heart of the nation was halted for days at a time - time and again - during the year. Even when the drought-diminished Mighty Mississippi is open to barges, the water level is often so low that barges must carry lighter loads to keep from running aground and towboats must push fewer barges in order to navigate a narrower channel. Ironically, ...